Ongoing environmental change in the Mekong floodplains

The Mekong floodplains, covering approximately 70,000 km2 and including Cambodia's Tonle Sap, are experiencing environmental deterioration driven by rapid economic growth and climate change. While hydropower dams are a significant concern for biodiversity and livelihoods, the document argues that focusing solely on dams overlooks other local threats affecting water resources, vegetation, and fish.

• The Mekong floodplains, which encompass about 70,000 km2 and include the Tonle Sap wetland in Cambodia, are critical for food security, providing the primary source of animal protein for millions in Cambodia and Vietnam and supporting over 50% of Vietnam's rice cultivation.
• Rapid economic growth and integration into the global economy have increased the exploitation of natural resources for energy, manufacturing, consumption, and export, leading to the deterioration of floodplain resources.
• While hydropower development is viewed as a threat to community livelihoods and biodiversity, the document contends that an over-emphasis on dams by the international scientific community has obscured other local drivers of ecosystem deterioration regarding fish, vegetation, and water resources.

APA

Stockholm Environment Institute (2019). Ongoing environmental change in the Mekong floodplains. https://www.sei.org/publications/ongoing-environmental-change-mekong-floodplains/

Chicago

Stockholm Environment Institute. Ongoing environmental change in the Mekong floodplains. 2019. https://www.sei.org/publications/ongoing-environmental-change-mekong-floodplains/.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=Stockholm Environment Institute |title=Ongoing environmental change in the Mekong floodplains |date=27 February 2019 |url=https://www.sei.org/publications/ongoing-environmental-change-mekong-floodplains/ |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{stockholmenvironmentinstitute2019ongoing, author = {{Stockholm Environment Institute}}, title = {{Ongoing environmental change in the Mekong floodplains}}, institution = {Stockholm Environment Institute}, year = {2019}, month = feb, url = {https://www.sei.org/publications/ongoing-environmental-change-mekong-floodplains/}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }